Incubating apparatus



4 Sheets-Sheet 1- Filed July 17, 1948 F if w M n W n H w a Y v u Y M w w @N u Q, Wn) wm Feb. 2, 1954 s. H. SMITH INCUBATING APPARATUS Filed July 1'?, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 SAM/.EL H. kSMITH l? y WM A Trae/Veys Feb. 2, 1954 s, H, sMlTH 2,667,857

INCUBATING APPARATUS Filed July 17, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. SAMUEL HJM/7H Feb., 2, 1954 s H, sMn-H 2,667,857

INCUBATING APPARATUS Filed July 17, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. JAM/1f! H. SMITH ATTOE/VEYS Figure 1G is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of a tray of this invention; and

Fig. 1l is a perspective view of a typical drop latch, supporting structure therefor being shown fragmentarily.

With regard to Figs. 1 and 2, the incubator shell S is compact, sturdy and well insulated and yet is easily accessible from either end for loading and unloading operations Vand maintenance and repair attentions. Generally speaking, it is rectangular and made up of bottom wall I6, top wall Il, opposing side walls, a loading end wall I4 including a hinged door l5, and a hatching or unloading end wall I1 largely consisting of a door I9 also hinged at one side to one of the four corner columns of the shell. Extending transversely of the shell and deiining the floor thereof are three abutting metal channels 20 with their sides disposed downwardly. The outer sides 2l of the two end channels are secured to metal box sections 22 which rest on metal supporting skids 23 on which shell S may be moved about. Wooden blocks 24 are employed in joining in spaced relation the metal parts of box sections 22 and channels 20 to minimize heat transfer between these parts. Suitable heat insulating material 25, such as Celotex is packed in the channels and held in place by wooden panels 21 engaging the channel sides and closing the ends thereof. The top wall and side walls are each similarly constructed of three abutting metal channels 26 and box sections as indicated at 28, which are secured to the channel assemblies in insulating relation by means of the wooden blocks 29, as described above. `Celotex or equivalent insulating material 30 is packed in channels 26 and light metal sheeting 3| closes said channels and retains the insulation 36 in place.

The end walls are quite different from the others but are quite similar to each other, comprising in each instance an upper panel 33 of wood (one shown) which is secured to the top wall by suitable means such as screws 34 and to a transversely extending beam 35 disposed a short distance below the top wall. Doors l5 and I9 which extend from just below said panels to a point below the upper edge of bottom wall l and from one side of shell S to the other, constitute the remainder of these end walls. Each of these doors comprises a pan 31 of relatively thin metal having a wooden cover plate 38 secured thereto and defining a space within the pan and heat insulating material 39 disposed in this space. Attachment of the door to shell S may be accomplished by conventional means such as hinges and clamps, rubber sealers 40 being attached to the inner peripheral portions of the doors for air tightness.

The tray-supporting structure T, as shown in Fig. 2, comprises two lattice-like assemblies (one being shown), each of which comprises six-sheet metal columns 45 and eighteen angle iron beams 46 (three not shown) substantially equally spaced and extending horizontally across the area dened by columns 45 to which they are secured by means of spot welds. On the upper surfaces of their horizontally extending portions beams 46 are provided with prominences or ridges 41 located in a particular manner for a purpose subsequently to be described. These assemblies are disposed inV register with each other adjacent to the side walls of the incubator, being hung on flanged hanger irons 48 to shell S by top beam members 49 which have flanged portions in supporting engagement with hangersll. In the upper part of the hatching section of structure T, a relatively short angle iron beam 5| for carrying a horizontally disposed plate 52 is secured in position by welds to a column 45 and a short column element 54. The purpose of plate 52 is to prevent the escape of chicks from the uppermost egg-carrying tray shown immediately therebelow. Still another angle iron beam 55 twice as long as beam 5| is disposed at the bottom of the hatching section, joining the end and the adjacent column 45 to support a hatching tray below the lowermost egg-carrying tray.

The tray-moving and egg-tilting mechanism M comprises in general an assembly dening in side elevation a pair of parallelograms having a common horizontal side and having generally vertical sides pivoted in their mid-sections and at their ends for motion relative to the horizontal parallel sides and to each other. This assembly, except for actuating means and tray-engaging elements, is located back of structure T and between said structure and the adjacent side wall of shell S. The actuating means includes a hydraulic piston cylinder 66 operatively associated with both mechanisms M through pivoted links 6l (one shown) connected to the upper horizontal member 62 of each said mechanism for reciprocating movement thereof at predetermined regular intervals. Analyzing the structure more in detail, it is seen that in each case the moving mechanism, in addition to the foregoing elements includes a lower horizontally disposed angle iron member 64 which extends from adjacent to the loading end of structure T to a point adjacent to the hatching end thereof. Horizontal members 62 and 64 are connected by means of two parallel upper links 66 pivoted at their upper ends to member 62 adjacent to its ends and pivoted in the mid-sections to the supporting structure T, and by means of two parallel lower levers 61 which are similarly associated with and connected to the supporting structure and member 64. The free ends of links 66 and 61 are pivoted together, as indicated in Fig. 2. Three columns 16 comprising metal plates are welded at their ends to members 52 and 64 and provided with drop latches 12 for engaging egg-carrying trays supported on beams 46. Latches 12 of the two columns nearest the loading end are disposed apart in every case the width of an egg-carrying tray, while those of the third column are disposed apart from those of the intermediate column a distance equal to the width of two such traysl Columns 10 are all joined together by means of four horizontal bars or rods 13 equally spaced apart to assure the transfer of moving eiiort substantially equally from piston cylinder 60 throughout structure M tothe egg-carrying trays themselves.

Latches 12 are each of two-piece construction comprising an angle iron'14 welded to column 10 and provided with two spaced slots in its horizonally extending portion, and a drop element in the form of bar or rod 15 having end portions which extend through the bracket slots and having a mid section suspended below the horizontal portion of bracket 14 for engagement with the end of an egg tray. Element 15 is in eiect a ratchet, being readily passed by a tray moving from right to left in respect to the latch shown in Fig. 11 and being eiective to position the tray when it is moved from right to left against the tray. By virtue of the manner in which the latches are mounted on the columns acum-s es lunti-ll-eit engageslffthethird.@drop.latch which 5 l opposes the first two drop latches andstopsxthefl.; tray --just short of= :thel' hatching `Aeonfipartrnent.. Thiisra .tota1fof three ftrays Iaan be lloadedflin tandem l' fini -the11maehine 1 andi gripped -ff between a irstandia third drop'latch wherebyrallfrt'hree "o4 trays-:will y-be :moved: lengthwisefof .the machine when the'trayimoving mechanismwis 'actuated in eitherldirectionn Whena trays to *Ibai-reemoved@ to their hatchingcompartment: of. thef ma# china-#the third-drop latch or'latches engaging-1.5-y it 'are -manuallyT-liftedrt'o l'release the 'tray and f thendropped for'- 'engagement '.with" thefnext tray.' in sequence,

Referringnow to Figi', the =eggcarrying1trays E 'f -.the 'present Ainvention-'in general-comprise! fzo' frameineansfl'; and af'plur'aiitylof egg-"supportingrift-.z means R "associated: Ivvith the L.traine meansy for" rotationfa'bout spaced: lain-2s@y f. lx/[cre` in 'detail;ihow= ever, =in these.I 'trays .fthe'f frame means .includes sheetmetals'ides'l and ehdsf'i," preferably. offf2'5 unitary `construction;- 'and brackets f' Which-:are movable with respect to the.framesand-attached :E to end. portions 59.Bracllzets1 8@ '.'defmef below.. saidifrarnefendsfa trackf'l .iipon Whichawhe'elsiii mayA be run; 'andrfthe'ses .ends .arev .apertured as n at .83 -to 1- receive Irods vR which -extendtlfengthwise of the: trames' -andihave xsecured l`to `:thei1-..-,:end Within :theaiends 11.9 .discsbrgwheels .85 .to' minion. tracks, .8 I The-"Z spacing.zbetvveenA thesexirods :is 'f such ythat:eggsz'of .iaverageLsizemaybe-"supported thereon andrwhendhe--ro ds: are rotated relativi to -thefeggspasibyi moving themestof the'tray relative toitra'cks 8i, the'eggs'will be moved from a positingsuch zasflindicated1'at.:Fig;`:4 to ,..thatV I. shown 1in 1Fig ;6, Where :the majoitzaxes 'of kthem-G eggs.. are. generally .parallelzfto .each other. and:A all: .are rdisliosed:atv an :angle off-,approximately 30. lto thezvertical;1- .It will .be appreciated-that t such moyementfrombne extremeposition of they track .to the-other will result in a total movement. l of 'a given; egg1;.or1..its= major axis*-.through-ap-yl" proximately 60".v Surprisingly enough-however, in addition: to this:.eiect the .eggs-fall tend yto rotateto'anappxeciabie extent at the same time@ Thisfcombined-.zand'complexinctionis of bene .Y ficiai effect and. .1 hypothesize, Withoutimposmg. ...50 limitationson-the appended Vclaims butnmerely er in the interestof complete exposition of my..in..,..- vention, :that for Vthe saine fresuits lessftiltingris necessary lvvhere :this novel .-.motion .obtains .thanl where -itdoesnt. u

Brackets r$50 .are..each. provided-.with a pairof hangerfclips B6 fattheir upper ends. which: .grip..,x the upper .-edgefportionof `anfend TIQto support the.. track against' @the ...discs 35. .-and.. .to engage sidespi 8 Vand.'.liinlt. motionof :tray relative .to .the 0 trackto a predetermined maXimum..-..By.'.virtu.e.. l of the manner..v in which-rodsf-R .and .brackets are.v arrangedfanti..associated thej tram-.is supe...v ported byemeansr :of the... rods and brackets .on .1. beams 46,- tracksJI .resting .thereon and` being...(0 retained.y .in ..postion,.,by ,.ridgesft .as .the trays.v aremoved by .mechanism .Two .spacer .brack- :1- ets or lugs 88.are...attached.. to .thef.frame,..one being., located... cin...eachside thereof. iorwengage-f ment...,vvith. one of .the'tWoY-cuter-ifodslt to .preventjil these...r ods..irornmovinglaterally relative. .to .therV in. otherrods under. the-.Weghtofeggspn theltrayi...

Fromtheioregoing deseriptipn-.of tray seen.thatllthemanuacturelthereof .as-a. unitary--`C structure insofar as the side and end elements '75 -..electricallysmssoeiatecbnwithi:3th

potentiometer.; i' through fa; pairof resistors-l` M12iorxzcurrentflciii. controlr.: .A .ballastetubetdlis arranged iin seriesx. with'ztransforinen 9.3rfomyoltageefregulation, and a variable". nesistenfdiGrjtorlrough'enerangingade ...justmentzfomipotentiometermt00pis :situateddn trolfandtis of :thesamerhasicgdesign'as .the first anda-.operates on'.itheisamefiprinciple;'butfwith a 1in'derstandhn4 In ftheaoperationfiof ItheGirCutwA, Af.f\,.d;ustrnent is maderfat thefeontrolrtemperature;.sorthat the' grid;l .lead. -from: tubef-SS A'is at the.- proper! voltage ljlustfto .cutf .oifntne ituoe'v at .the .predetermined temperaturen-Thus easthe temperature 4Within i there=incubator:ztindicatedezat II 0 dotted out-t linelrtincreases;.elementtA decreasesffits resistance-sand sthus.Lmakes-theegrid-.more negative, `finally. .resultingf in circuitt-breakage ,wand .de-

obtainednwhen..ther-heating element-.ais again. supplied.,.withf.currentw-whenmthe ...temperature falls....and.the-..circuit-is closed 1by...the=:solenoid beingz;actuatedsthroughathe .action nf. therthyf, 'ratron tube. l The .circuitsincludingsiglement,B operatesn exactly rthe...sainemaarmen:of .courseV and,.maybe set in thesamefiwam' except r,that the reference-marais .to '.thellhuniditygor Wet bulhtemperaturlerathei'. than, the`fdry'-bu1b .tem-

'penaturexasfin element A. Q..

7 rY and having an air inlet opening H adjacent to and below the lower end of humidier H2 and an outlet H6 directly beneath an inverted fan H8 located just inside the hatching end of said -Y shell. The pan carries a screen H9 for uniformly distributing water flowing onto the pan from a delivery line entering the top of shell S, and water flowing from the pan is drawn oiT outside the incubator through a line 422. The heating element 9D may be associated with the humidier so that heat may be delivered rapidly and effectively to water iiowing over the pan to further increase its rate of evaporation.V

Water flowing over this pan during each hatching period will sequester down evolved from chicks and carried by air currents into duct Hd, thus eliminating the. necessity of vthe special down-collecting air filters of hitherto conventional incubators. A

In the use of an incubator of the design hereinabove described, it has been found advantageous to follow a certain definite schedule and to proceed in the manner hereinbelow outlined with the humidity and temperature controls set and the incubator at predetermined wet and dry bulb temperatures. Trays F, as shown in Fig. 3, are loaded with eggs, as indicated in Figs. 4 and 6, and placed in the first compartment of the inoubator chamber between the first and second columns of the vertical tiers and on odd shelves, beginning with the top shelf. 'I'he trays extend from adjacent one wall to adjacent the opposite wall and rest on their track brackets 80 upon the beams 45, and are engaged by latches 'i2 of mechanism M whereby Athe trays are moved periodically relative to structure 'I' and the track brackets, with the result that the eggs are tilted, as described above. Assuming that 'thev first series of trays is placed in the incubator on Sunday, a second group may be made up in the same manner and loaded in the even-number spaces on Wednesday, whereupon the odd-number trays will be moved into the second section of the in cubating compartment and `the cycle will be repeated upon the following Sunday with the evennumber trays moving into the second position of the incubating section and new trays coming into odd-number spaces of the first section. On the eighteenth day after being placed in the incubator, the rst trays are moved into the hatching section as indicated in Fig. 2; and hatching trays 525, comprising open pans substantially deeper than the egg-carrying trays and having imperforate bottoms, are placed under each egg-carrying tray and receive the chicks as they hatch and fall between rods R. After a total of twenty-one and one-half days in the incubator, the eggs of the odd-number trays will have hatched and may be removed together with the hatching trays containing the chicks, and another new series started through the incubator.

So that'the moving'mechanism` will' have al positive effect at all times upon the'trays regardless of the direction of their movement relative to the supporting structure, empty trays are carried along with full trays until the hatching cycle is brought up to the point where all the trays moving through the structure contain eggs. In other words, referring to the iirst step in starting the incubator as described above, it is necessary v.first to' load two empty trays'into the second and iinal sections of the incubator chamber in order that the egg-carrying tray loaded into the first section will be returned to its original position when the'moving mechanism oper- 8 ates on its'return stroke. Likewise and for the same reason, when the incubator is to be shut down, empty trays E are carried through with full trays until the latter are through the incubating and hatching periods and withdrawn from shell S.

Air circulation in the incubator is continuous throughout the period that the incubator is in use so that all the eggs and chicks therein will be subjected to only the most ideal temperature and humidity conditions at all times. As indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1, air iiow within'the incubator is directly downward from fan H8 in a main stream through outlet IHS Vand thence longitudinally of shell S in a plurality of streams between the horizontal rows of trays E. At the hatching end of the shell the various streams unite and iiow upwardly and enter duct I I4 through opening H5, wherein iiow again is generally horizontal or longitudinal of the shell, a portion of the air flowing over and another portion of it iiowing under pan H3 to the fan. By means of an opening (not shown) in the top of shell S a small portion of the circulating air may be vented continuously and by other similar means (also not shown) fresh air make-up may be drawn into said shell.

From the above description of the incubator and hatcher of the present invention and particularly the portion thereof relating to my present novel egg-carrying trays and egg-tilting mechanisms, it will be understood that generally the novel method of this invention comprises the steps of turning an egg on its major axis and simultaneously turning the egg on its minor axis during its incubation period for the purpose of preventing attachment of the chick embryo to the shell. More specifically, in the preferred practice of this method the egg is placed substantially on end with the small end thereof directed generally downwardly as indicated in Fig. 4. 1n this position the major axis of the egg is directed generally vertically, while the minor axis extends generally horizontally. Periodically the egg is moved from one tilted position to another and simultaneously is turned on its major axis as mentioned above. Actually this movement is one which results in the major axis travelling through a vertical angle approximating 60 and is reciprocal so that at timed intervals the upper end of the eggs major axis describes a substantially vertical arc of approximately 60 as it travels from a position substantially 30 to the vertical to another position approximately 30 on the other side of the vertical. This turning motion may involve a complete revolution or several revolutions of the egg in each of the reciprocating strokes, but preferably it is limited to less than about and in the best practice is about 45, since this turning motion to a greater extent is not necessary, particularly where the tilting motion of the egg is as described above. In commercial operations in accordance with the present method a plurality of eggs will be moved at the same time to aproximately the saine extent as, for instance, where they are loaded into a tray of the type shown in Fig. 3 so that at least all of those in one group or, in other words, in one tray will be moved simultaneously.

From the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings those skilled in the art will understand that, unlike the incubators known and used heretofore, that of my present invention is readily adaptable to very economical mass production methods. Furthermore, the mau terials involved in its construction are of standspeciiications and readily available at relatively low cost so that the total cost of manufacture is substantially less than that of any other incubator of equivalent capacity.

Although the foregoing description is necessarily of a detailed character, in order that the invention be completely set forth, it is to be understood that the specic terminology is not intended to be restrictive or conning, and that various rearrangements of parts and modications of detail may be resorted to without departing from the scope or spirit of this invention as claimed herein.

l-aving thus described the present invention so that those skilled in the art will be able to understand and practice the same, I state that what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is dened in what is claimed.

What is claimed is:

l. An incubator comprising a housing for a plurality of egg trays, and means within the housing for reciprocally moving the trays sub stapt-Tally horizontally and tilting eggs carried thereby' said means comprising a frame movable relative to said housing and engaging said trays, and actuating mechanism supported by the housing and connected to the frame for causing reciprocating movement of said frame, said frame comprising substantially horizontally disposed elongated members, spaced vertically disposed elongated members connected to said horizontal members, latch means carried by vertical members for engagement with the trays to move the trays with the frame relative to the housing, and links pivotally secured to the housing and to the frame to move the frame and to guide said frame in motion relative to the housing.

2. An incubator comprising a housing for a plurality of egg trays, and means within the housing for reciprocally moving the trays substantially horizontally and tilting eggs carried thereby, said means comprising a frame reciprocably associated with said housing and engaging said trays, and a hydraulic piston cylinder operatively associated with said frame for causing reciprocating movement of said frame, said frame comprising substantially horizontally disposed elongated members, spaced vertically disposed elongated members connected to said horizontal members, latch means carried by vertical members for engagement with the trays to move the trays with the frame relative to the housing, and links pivotally secured to the housing and to the frame to move the frame and to guide said frame in motion relative to the housing, and said piston cylinder being vertically spaced from the frame and the piston being connected to one of said horizontally disposed frame members for reciprocating motion therewith.

3. An incubator comprising a housing for a plurality of egg trays, and means within the housing for reciprocally moving the trays substantially horizontally and tilting eggs carried thereby, said means comprising a frame having substantially parallel and horizontally top and bottom members, two pair of links pivoted to the top and bottom members at spaced locations, each link being pivotally connected at its midsection to the housing, a plurality of vertically extending tray-engaging members connected to said top and bottom members for movement therewith, and a hydraulic piston cylinder connected to the frame for moving it reciprocally.

4. An incubator comprising a housing for a plurality of egg trays, and means within the housing for reciprocally moving the trays substantially horizontally and tilting eggs carried thereby, said means comprising a pair of spaced apart frames each having substantially parallel and horizontal top and bottom members, two pair of links pivoted to the top and bottom members at spaced locations, each link being pivotally connected at its mid-section to the housing, a pair of vertically extending tray-engaging members connected to said top and bottom members for movement therewith, and a hydraulic piston cylinder operatively associated with said frames for moving them reciprocally in phase.

5. In an incubator including a housing and a plurality of horizontally disposed, open top, eggcarrying trays arranged one above another and supported within the housing for motion relative to said housing, the combination of a frame in the housing movable relative to the housing and engaging the trays, said frame comprising a plurality of spaced, horizontally disposed elongated members, spaced vertically disposed elongated members connected to the horizontal members for movement therewith, means carried by the frame to engage the trays, and links pivotally secured to the housing and to the said horizontal members to guide the frame in motion relative to the housing.

6. In an incubator including a housing and a plurality of horizontally disposed, open top, eggcarrying trays arranged one above another and supported within the housing for motion relative to said housing, the combination of a frame in the housing movable relative to the housing and engaging the trays, said frame comprising a plurality of spaced, horizontally disposed elongated members, spaced 'vertically disposed elongated members connected to the horizontal members for movement therewith, latch means carried by the frame to engage the trays, and links pivotally secured to the housing and to the said horizontal members to guide the frame in motion relative to the housing, said latch means comprising drop-latches secured to the said vertical members for movement therewith to engage the trays and reciprocate them relative to the housing and for motion relative to the trays at predetermined intervals preparatory to advancing the trays toward the discharge end of the housing.

SAMUEL H. SMITH.

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